Fibroid Pain

I found this group while searching through many web pages on fibroids. I recently was told my 2cm fibroid grew to be just over 5cm. There was about 2 years in between each ultrasound. I went in March for the most recent one. I started having pain this past Monday so I called my obgyn and he sent me for another. It had grown about 1cm more. He is now referring me for a second opionion to an obgyn/oncologist. The oncologist part has me completely freaked out.

My fiance and I are getting married in May next year, will be trying to conceive as of the honeymoon. I'm 34 now, will be 35 then. My doc mentioned abdominal surgery. Reading some boards on here made me feel better. All I could think of was cancer.

Did anyone else have pain but no bleeding? I'm on a three month pill, seasonique, not sure if that's keeping it from happening. I have some slight nausea, but mostly pain on my right side, kind of a burning feeling, and going throughout my abdomin. Worried that's not normal.

I'm calling the oncologist this afternoon once he has my paperwork. Just nervous and scared.

Comments (4)

To answer your question, I had extreme pain during my pregnancy it was so bad I thought either I was in labor or losing my baby. Niether one was true. The fibroid was simply degenerating. For me the pain was gradual & became worse to extreme over a period of a week. Also, I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but I know from experience with previous conditions that if pain is bad it can cause nausea. It's possible that the nausea is totally unrelated. Nausea is also a pregnancy symptom & fibroids can grow large during pregnancy. So, I would rule pregnancy out just to be sure.

About your seasonique pill, I would ask if it contains progesterone because progesterone is known to help fibroid growth. That's one reason fibroids can grow so quickly & large during pregnancy. Estrogen only bc pills were recommended to me for this reason post partum.

Also, some gyn's are not very knowledgeable with regard to fibroids. It took me years, & going to a reproductive specialist to even identify that I had fibroids even though for years I had symptoms of fibroids that went unnoticed. I'm not saying that's the case with yours, but if it is he could be being overly cautious by sending you to an oncologist. All this is to say try not to freak out. I could be nothing at all, or could be the bc causing growth.

One more thing, if you know you want to conceive in a year I would def consider talking to your dr about options to either shrink or remove that fibroid. I can tell you from experience I don't ever want to go through a pregnancy with fibroids again. My child is perfectly healthy & delivered on time. However, it was a high risk pregnancy that was painful due to the fibroids. & if you think this is unnerving imagine adding the concern that you will have for your baby on top of what you are dealing with now. Not fun! I am actually preparing to have a myoectomy to have the fibroids removed that grew during my pregnancy so I can enjoy a normal pregnancy with my next child.

I had a myomectomy before I got married in 2009 to remove a 10cm fibroid. I can't speak to your individual case but most fibroids are not cancerous. Since being pregnant I have had a fibroid that grew from 2cm to 6cm. Like the poster above it does create discomfort and anxiety in pregnancy (I'm 5 months now) and I hope to get it removed before trying for my next child. I have read a lot on this and while it is uncomfortable (painful at times) and somewhat nerve wrecking most people with fibroids have uneventful pregnancies. That said, I would prefer to go into a pregnancy without one - knowing mine tend to grow pretty big. The surgery is a process but worth it if you ask me. There are a number of reproductive endocrinologists and surgeons who do this all the time and are worth consulting. I chose a renowned surgeon for it who knew that my future ability to have children was my number one priority and I felt he did an amazing job. I would have probably been fine with this pregnancy except it was five years ago and new fibroids can always grow.

Thanks for responding. I've started calming down a little bit, but I should be banned from places like Web MD. My lower back is hurting so I've been thinking the same symptoms are like that of ovarian cancer. Which I know is super rare, especially at my age. Also nothing seemed amiss on the ultrasound regarding my ovaries. Still just feeling somewhat bloated, slight pain, and the nausea comes and goes. I will be going to get a pregnancy test too just in case.

To answer your question, I had extreme pain during my pregnancy it was so bad...

Posted
05/31/2014

To answer your question, I had extreme pain during my pregnancy it was so bad I thought either I was in labor or losing my baby. Niether one was true. The fibroid was simply degenerating. For me the pain was gradual & became worse to extreme over a period of a week. Also, I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but I know from experience with previous conditions that if pain is bad it can cause nausea. It's possible that the nausea is totally unrelated. Nausea is also a pregnancy symptom & fibroids can grow large during pregnancy. So, I would rule pregnancy out just to be sure.

About your seasonique pill, I would ask if it contains progesterone because progesterone is known to help fibroid growth. That's one reason fibroids can grow so quickly & large during pregnancy. Estrogen only bc pills were recommended to me for this reason post partum.

Also, some gyn's are not very knowledgeable with regard to fibroids. It took me years, & going to a reproductive specialist to even identify that I had fibroids even though for years I had symptoms of fibroids that went unnoticed. I'm not saying that's the case with yours, but if it is he could be being overly cautious by sending you to an oncologist. All this is to say try not to freak out. I could be nothing at all, or could be the bc causing growth.

One more thing, if you know you want to conceive in a year I would def consider talking to your dr about options to either shrink or remove that fibroid. I can tell you from experience I don't ever want to go through a pregnancy with fibroids again. My child is perfectly healthy & delivered on time. However, it was a high risk pregnancy that was painful due to the fibroids. & if you think this is unnerving imagine adding the concern that you will have for your baby on top of what you are dealing with now. Not fun! I am actually preparing to have a myoectomy to have the fibroids removed that grew during my pregnancy so I can enjoy a normal pregnancy with my next child.
I hope some of this helps alleviate your fears .

It is reassuring to read your post. I am going through my first pregnancy and the pain is unbearable. I am only 4 months pregnant but with 9 fibroids, 2 of which quite large (16X12X10) and (10X8X7). It hurts and takes so much of the joy away. Because of their size, the degeneration has been occuring over the past month, not days or week. They are heavy and sit on top of little one, who keeps growing hence the pain!

It was a wonderful surprise to learn of my pregnancy and I did not quite like the idea of myomectomy before I was sure that I would meet someone and successufully become pregnant. My mother had a myomectomy in her late 50's. It changed her gait and immediately after, she gained so much weight.

In any case, I will just wait patiently and pray that they degenerate quicker, because they are quite painful.

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